Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the closest island to the Chagos archipelago is that is not part of the UK deal with Mauritius.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The closest land to the Chagos group is the Maldives islands with Gan, part of Addu atoll (also known as Seenu Atoll) as the most southerly point.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to his Department's press release entitled UK and Mauritius joint statement, 3 October 2024, published on 3 October 2024, from whom will the United States lease the Diego Garcia military base; and over what period of time will the new lease cover.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
With respect to Diego Garcia, there is no lease. US presence and operations in the British Indian Ocean Territory are governed by a series of international agreements, beginning with a 1966 Exchange of Notes between the US and UK, which set out that the whole Territory should be made available for UK and US defence purposes. Under the proposed Treaty between the UK and Mauritius, the UK will exercise all rights and authorities which the UK requires for the long-term, secure and effective operation of the military base. The agreement will have a duration of 99 years from entry into force, extendable with the agreement of both parties.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Joint Statement by the UK and Mauritius, published on 3 October 2024, what the (a) annual and (b) total projected cost is of the indexed annual payment.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Agreement between the UK and Mauritius on 3 October will, for the first time in 50 years, secure the important UK-US military base on Diego Garcia. The base plays a crucial role in regional and international security. It is not normal practice for the UK to reveal the value of its payments for military bases anywhere across the globe. To do so could put at risk their future secure operation. Parliament will have the opportunity to scrutinise the underpinning Treaty as part of the ratification process.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Joint Statement by the UK and Mauritius, published on 3 October 2024, what the transformational infrastructure partnership covers; and how much funding he has allocated to that partnership.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Agreement between the UK and Mauritius on 3 October will, for the first time in 50 years, secure the important UK-US military base on Diego Garcia. The base plays a crucial role in regional and international security. It is not normal practice for the UK to reveal the value of its payments for military bases anywhere across the globe. To do so could put at risk their future secure operation. Parliament will have the opportunity to scrutinise the underpinning Treaty as part of the ratification process.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he was made aware that nine staff of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) may have been involved in the attack on Israel of 7 October 2023 (a) during his discussion with UN Secretary-General Guterres and (b) prior to his decision to reinstate funding to UNRWA.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In January, the UK paused funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) following allegations that 19 staff were involved in the 7 October Hamas attack.
Catherine Colonna conducted an independent review that found the existing UNRWA framework was "robust", but neutrality issues persisted. UNRWA committed to implementing all recommendations. The Foreign Secretary was subsequently reassured that UNRWA is committed to the highest standards of neutrality. The Foreign Secretary called the UN Secretary-General on 18 July to discuss funding to UNRWA. He then announced resumption of funding to UNRWA on 19 July. The UN's Office of Internal Services Oversight (OIOS) led an investigation into the specific allegations against individual staff members. On 5 August, OIOS findings concluded that nine members of UNRWA may have been involved in the atrocities. We welcome UNRWA's action to terminate the contracts of these individuals.